Rockin' the Foundation: Seireitou Kawahiru vs Raian Getsueikirite
Nakayo... A dimension much like the Human World. Filled with lush forests and towering cities, but for the longest time, it has been the secret dwelling place of Raian Getsueikirite. The largest city, resembling modern day New York City, sits on the edge of an immense ocean of vast, cold waters. There we find Raian today. "He's coming." he thought, a grin escaping his usual stotic demeanor. "I could pick that reiatsu out of an army of Menos Grande." As he thought this, he launched himself towards the roof of a building resembling the Empire State Building. Then, with his spirit force alone, he opened a gap in the sky to welcome his friend to his humble abode. Following three more hours, Raian sat there, wondering what was taking his friend so long. However... CRASH. A massive explosion occured in the ground below the building Raian was on, the latter's eyes formed a comic expression. The cause of the crash was none other than the famed Silver-Haired Seireitou Kawahiru, rubbing his head as he sat there on his bum. "Ehh... Dammit... overshot myself. That's the last time I let Kamui talk me into accepting Kidō training from him..." he mused comically, as he looked around. "Such a barren wasteland... where am I?" he questioned himself. Raian's comical expression got wider as he slowly walked on the air down towards his bumbling friend, "Late as always Sei-san. Though I'll give you props for the entrance. I'd wait three hours any day to see you fall out of a hole in the sky." he joked as he finally reached his friend's level. "You're in the Nakayo. Not the most social of places, but it serves it's purposes." The eyes of Seireitou turned to face his friend, as he got up, patting the dust off his uniform. "Well, Kamui's becoming quite the Adam Sandler lately with his Kidō...anyways, what's with the invitation to this place? It's quite depressing... not that I'm complainin' or nothin'" he commented, as he looked around this unusual place; somewhere that not even he knew existed. "Isn't it obvious?" Raian asked, grinning. "I invited you here to fight. I haven't seen you in...." he suddenly trailed off, counting off each of his fingers before quitting. "...well too long. Not to mention that we haven't had a brawl since after Datara was first defeated." he explained. "This place is just barren and depressing enough to pull off the perfect place for a battle." Seireitou smiled softly, as his attention finally returned to Raian. "I see, I see. I'm surprised you chose such a random time like this for our fight... surely you have no ulterior motive, eh my friend?" he asked, his smile not leaving his face. "True, the Nakayo hosts my army against Soul Society, but I have yet to mobilize them. My reason for fighting you is purely for sport, old friend. I wanna see what power the Seijin Order has given to you." he replied. Suddenly, Seireitou's eyes narrowed. "An army to decimate Soul Society... Gah, just when things were finally looking up... but, I guess a fight to learn the commander's true power would be valuble information. And then again... It'd be nice to kick his ass again." he smiled, relishing his final thought as he sqautted down. "Hope this town can hold us, Raian-san." he declared. Shooting for the Sun: Their Match Begins! "It won't." he joked, "But we'll make due. We always have." Smiling himself, he took his spot at a location directly sixteen feet away from Seireitou on the street, "" A reddish-pink energy gathered in front of his mouth and instantly fired itself towards Seireitou, "Cero!" Raian thought. As it neared, Seireitou closed his eyes. "Cero, huh? Without a Mask either... more Arrancar than Vizard. That's good to know." he noted, as he jumped forward toward the Cero blast. Without making a single gesture, "Bakudō #81: Danku" he thought to himself, forming a mirror shield in front of his being as the Cero collided with it, but merely began to rickochet off toward the sides; exactly what Seireitou had wanted. He spread his arms out, as each of his index fingers shone green light, using one of the forbidden Kidō to teleport two massive rocks to both sides of the blocked Cero, causing them to crash into it, exploding on impact. The result was a smokescreen, from the explosion, as Raian could no longer see Seireitou within the white puffs. Raian watched his opponent with antcipation for the next rush of attacks, but eyes widened as he began to notice the figure of Seireitou, cupping his hands behind him as he was carrying a small orb of spiritual energy. "Eat this!" he yelled, firing his massive Kagehameha blast at Raian, the latter having little time to dodge such a close-range attack with such massive size. The blast separated on both sides of Raian's body as he held it back with his right hand, a comical look was plastered on his face. "Why does this technique seem nostalgic?" he joked. Suddenly redish-pink energy gathered within his right palm, "Cero!" he declared out loud, causing a massive explosion as the two blasts canceled each other out. Using the explosion as a distraction, he used Sonído to vanish and appear behind Seireitou, though he made no move to attack him. "Still...to think he has a reiryoku blast like that without releasing his sword..he's powerful." he thought. Seireitou made no movement of his body or head to face Raian, but merely smirked softly. "Heh... using my own strategy effortlessly without even thinking about it. You'd think he was Ryun Uchiha." he joked to himself. "However..." he began, turning his body to face Raian. "He used a single hand to defeat my Kagehameha technique. And what's more... he didn't release his reiatsu, using mere physical strength to divide it. There's no mistaking it... he has hierro." he finished his thought, sighing as he placed a hand over his handle. "I believe I am repeating you by saying this. I know better than to take you lightly, so I won't give you warning when we begin." he mused, disappearing from sight. He suddenly reappeared above Raian, his blade already drawn. "Shikon... Hisakiten." he declared, firing off a massive fang of reiryoku from point-blank. Raian's eyes widened as the blast consumed him and devastated most of the city block they stood on. The smoke parted as Raian leaped out from it, having scuff marks all over his clothing, but other than that he was relatively unharmed. "Yari, yari...That was quite the reiryoku blast. I felt that one; my skin still stings." he said, being totally serious. He then pushed forward with Sonído, going full throttle aiming numerous punches and kicks towards his armed opponent. He spun around, sheathing his blade as the momentum allowed him to raise his left leg, wheel-kicking Raian's kick, as the two legs came for a clash. Several blocks, dodges, and strikes soon followed from the two martial arts masters. After a few minutes, Seireitou released the hold he held on the reishi particles under his feet, allowing him to drop from the sky, as he stared up at a confused Raian apathetically. "That's right... come follow me." Instead, however, Raian pointed his hands down towards the falling Seireitou, "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle! Hadō #63, Raikōhō!" he declared, firing an immense yellow blast down towards his target. Seireitou smirked, "You never do what I want, huh friend." he thought to himself, as he spun in the air, "Hadō #39: Nenshō." he thought, as he breathed out flames, forming a fire tornado as it clashed with Raikōhō, sending Seireitou crashing into the ground as the two Kidō negated eachother in the final result, leaving Seireitou unharmed as a crater was beneath his feet. "Yare Yare... So many old tricks." he mused. Raian formed a unique hand seal, causing reiatsu rings to surround his index fingers. Suddenly a massive amount of air pressure, shaped like a tiger formed behind Raian. "This is the fastest punch in my arsenal. I hope you enjoy it." he said, "Hirutora!" The speed of the punch could not be fathomed by anyone but these two fighters, due to their experience with fighting one another. The explosion was instant, demolishing several small houses and the remainder of the city block that Seireitou had landed in. Seireitou quickly raised his arm in defiance, "Bakudō #81: Danku!" he stated. However, there was something unusual about this one. It was like a jelly-substance, instead of a solid shield, as Raian's attack entered and was severely slowed down by the shield until he finally froze. Seireitou then spread his arms back, allowing the energy from the attack to flow through the surface of the barrier, shattering the edges of it as the attack's power was lowered to a weak amount, letting go of his hold on Raian. Because it was now weakened, Seireitou effortlessly caught Raian's hand and twisted his body overhead, throwing him down on the opposite side. Seireitou peered over to Raian, smirking. "That attack seemed reminiscent to something I read in Weekly Jump last week." he mused, as he then became serious. "Still... that attack has some strength to it. If it wasn't for my mastery of Danku, I'd have gotten hit just then, and possibly threw up a lung. Oh well, coulda shoulda woulda." he smiled, as he got into a fighting stance, preparing for their next exchange. "Impressive...he even defeated Hirutora. My strongest Hakuda was defeated, but perhaps..." he thought, quickly dropping into another stance. He then flashed into the air, where he could see the ocean not too far outside the city. With the snapping of his two fingers, massive amounts of water were summoned from the sea, forming into a mega mouth shark. "Great Shark, Ruler of the Sea; Bite than hand that feeds you. Break free, the chains that bind you. Launch forward and devour him that opposes you. Hadō #99, Taihensame Ago!" he declared, launching the immense beast towards his target below. Seireitou closed his eyes, holding out his hand as a purple spiritual orb focused within his palm. "I don't know if I have enough time... so I'll skip the incantation!" he pondered, as blue flames were drawn to the orb immediately, Seireitou's entire being surrounded by these flames. "Hadō #94: Idomu Īwatasu!" he yelled, firing the massive attack for Raian's shark technique, as the two created an enormous explosion. An explosion that deafened the skies, completely decimating the area around the two combatants as all was silenced. The sky was lacking clouds in the aftermath... as the two stared eachother down from their starting positions. Raian grinned, feeling his energy replenished, "The reiatsu absorbed by my #99 destructive spell has replenished my reiryoku. Excellent." Slowly, he reached under his trench coat and firmly gripped the dual form of his two Zanpakutō. "I suppose I should've known that our skills with Hakuda and Kidō would be almost identical. I doubt even in a battle of our sheer reiatsu, a winner would be declared." He then pulled his swords from their resting place, "Perhaps then, our Zanpakutō can settle things for us." he declared, flashing down to Seireitou's location and rested the blunt end of his blade on his friend's shoulder. "I wonder, have you seen my released Zanpakutō? Kill him with his own Feelings, Inyō!" Both of his blades turned into katana. "Let's begin." Released! The Blades of Friends Shall Cross Seireitou's eyes remained fixated upon Raian, a look of silent amusement filled his face. "It is definately different... Then again, Raian hasn't seen my true powers either. Hmm... I wonder if I'm overthinking this, but... he said 'did you ever see my release'. Raian's not the type to waste words... I better be careful." came to mind as he drew his solitary blade. Without stating a single word, the sword lost its silver color and attained a golden hue which surrounded the blade, changing its color. "Raian... may I say, it is an honor to fight you once again. I have no motive to kill you, but... if you don't give it your all, I may end up doing it by accident." he mused, his massive spiritual power flaring up in the surroundings. Raian smiled, "The honor is all mine. Fighting my greatest rival is always a great privilege for me." His reiatsu then flared itself as well, causing electrical outlets and power supplies in the city to short out due to its electrical properties. "But this time, I don't think we're fighting a battle that is so easily determined by reiatsu. After all, when we last fought, you were worlds apart from me. Since then, I've fully crossed the boundary between Shinigami and Hollow and I mastered my Bankai, revealing the true amount of reiatsu I've had within me. Training has made me your equal in Kidō and Hakuda, but I wonder if my relationship with my Zanpakutō has made me any closer to your relationship with yours. The difference between us is no longer like the night and day. This battle will be a close one." he explained. Then, from no where, Bala blasts erupted from Raian's person without him having to make a stance, and with insane charging speed. Seireitou stood there, his face unamused as the bala blasts collided into his being, creating more and more smoke as they all crashed into the silver-haired man. However, as the smoke cleared, Raian could see Seireitou standing there, unharmed. He was surrounded by a dense white spiritual power, causing black discharge in the space around him. "That's a bad joke, Raian-san." he stated, smirking softly. "You can't call yourself my equal, and then use a move like that. If you truly want to match me, you'll need more than Hollow tricks." he stated, raising his blade over his head. "Attōshūhen... Hanullim." he stated, as the entire area around Seireitou was engulfed in a massive storm of white flames. They ran up and down the streets, circling buildings and houses as a large portion of the city was burning. The white flames began to dance around Seireitou, repeating that same taunting motion near Raian. He narrowed his eyes, "Now then... let's see what you got." Launching himself forward, Raian slammed his first katana into Seireitou's blade and brought the other one into a sweeping motion beneath his target, attempting to cut his legs clean in two. While their blades were clashing, Raian employed a third tactic, "Bakudō #11, Tsuzuri Raiden!" Electricity sprang from his blade onto Seireitou's and through his foe's body. Unamused, Seireitou's blade released a torrent of flames, successfully killing two birds with one stone as both the lightning Kidō and the physical blade from reaching Seireitou. As Raian had to retreat from that location for fear of being burned by the white flames, Seireitou gave a small smile. "You need to be alittle more careful, my friend. Hanullim is not the same Zanpakutō it once was when we fought last, I'm afraid." he declared. Raian smiled, "Right back at you Sei-san." he declared as the flames of Hanullim reached Raian but seemingly reflected off of him, rebounding onto the surrounding streets. "Chōshininoru..." He then readjusted his stance, "I really dislike the name of this technique. It suggests that only cockiness sets it off, but really it's any form of confidence. Cockiness is a form of over confidence, so I guess that's why Yin and Yang named it that." he scoffed. "Be careful of your emotions, old friend. Even complete dominance over your emotions will set off my Inyō." The silver-haired man narrowed his eyes, "Powers that respond to Emotion... I see." he pondered, as he began to get teary-eyed, "Now I won't be able to win!!" he began crying. "I bet this next attack won't even make any effect!" he admitted, as his face covered in tears, firing off another massive torrent of flames from Hanullim while crying out loud. Raian narrowed his own eyes and raised his blade, "Inyō can sense your deceptive emotions too. Kyogi!" he declared. Suddenly, Seireitou's senses were flipped to the opposite. The flames blazed right on ahead, but hit nothing because Raian was actually behind Seireitou. "And before you go thinking it's an optical illusion, think again. As long as you try to deceive me, Kyogi will continue to flip your senses, even if you get the hang of one flip." Seireitou sighed, shaking his head slowly. "I wasn't expecting to have to use this so early in the fight but... here goes somethin'." he pondered, as he held his blade up, forming a massive amount of white flames that were sent for Raian. He attempted to show false emotions of happiness, believing that Raian would the Kyogi technique. A smile curled on Seireitou's lips, as the flames made their target that time, leaving Raian widen-eyed and speechless as he was pushed back. However, Seireitou's white flames were of low intensity in that shot, leaving Raian with small burns along his arm. The silver-haired man smiled, "Gyakuhan'nō, Hanullim. You see, Emotions are the complex psychophysiological experiences of an individual's state of mind as it is interacting with biochemical and environmental influences. Hanullim's power is interactions, and thus... your emotion-manipulative powers are rendered useless. If you have any new tricks, now is the time to use them." he smirked, sure that he bested Raian this time. Raian gritted his teeth, "Him cutting himself off from his emotions was unexpected, but trivial at best." he thought. "Perhaps you misunderstood. My Inyō responds to emotions...however, not just your emotions are responded to. Mine are too." he explained, tightening his grip on his hilts. "Wazurai..." he muttered. Suddenly, his left blade turned completely into microscopic dust particles. "The danger of my Shikai is far from over, my friend." Seireitou held up his finger, his face reflecting the crude reality of that technique should it backfire. "Allow me to stop you before you cause yourself to die... my friend, you misunderstood the nature of my ability. Did you stop to question just how it causes my emotions to be cut off? Simple, it allows for a reverse reaction. It is complex to explain to that regard, but for this... I'll breif it for you. Smell is the only sense that allows such dust specs from entering my body without direct strikes from your Zanpakutō. Entering my mouth will cause them to enter my stomach, and be dissolved by acid. Smell is nothing different from Emotion, in that it also is influenced by interactions. By creating a reverse reaction, I..." he stopped, as he gained a comic look to his face. "- don't know what will happen." he admitted, as he regaied seriousness in his voice. "However... I can tell you it won't be good for you." he explained, holding his blade at the ready. "I hope for your sake, you are correct." Raian said, launching himself forward with his remaining blade in hand. "''This is a lot more complex than I expected. If I don't do something, I'm toast. Wazurai...probably won't work, but it's good testing grounds to see what that power is capable of." he thought. He then pointed his hands at Seireitou. "Bakudō #99, Part 2; Bankin! First Song: Halting Fabric!" he declared. Suddenly, Seireitou was covered head-to-toe in a spiritual fabric. "Second Song: Hundred Linked Bolts!" he shouted. Dozens of metal bolts appeared and stabbed the fabric. "Final Song: Great Seal of 10,000 Forbiddings!" he finished. Suddenly, a massive cube appeared above Seireitou and was dropped onto him. As Raian finished, he panted from exhaustion. "Nineties-level Kidō are such a pain. I even did the incantation for that one. But...I'm not done yet!" he thought to himself. He then drew himself up, "This may seem like overkill, Sei-san, but it's the only way to test your endurance. Please understand." he said, pointing at Seireitou once more. "Limit of the thousands hands, respectful hands, unable to touch the darkness. Shooting hands unable to reflect the blue sky. The road that basks in light, the wind that ignited the embers, time that gathers when both are together, there is no need to be hesitant, obey my orders. Light bullets, eight bodies, nine items, book of heaven, diseased treasure, great wheel, grey fortress tower. Aim far away, scatter brightly and cleanly when fired. Hadō #91, Senjū Kōten Taihō!" he declared, blasting several bars of yellow light into the area of the seal, causing a devastating explosion. Another Threshold: Truths are Revealed Out of the explosion, propelled a damaged Seireitou. The seal was also broken by the powerful Kidō, allowing Seireitou freedom of movement. His right arm was covered in burns, and his right sleeve was completely ripped off, small bruises around his face, as the rest of his uniform appeared ragged from the attack. However, there was more than met the eye. Seireitou felt no exhastion, nor loss of stamina or energy, only appearing to have taken damage. "Raian-san, don't waste my time. We settled our Kidō prowess earlier. Don't tell me you're out of tricks already?" he smirked softly, his face revealing a devious smile. Raian summoned his other sword back to his hand at last. "Did we, Sei-san? It has indeed been proven that in a battle of all out Kidō, a victor would be impossible, as we are even." he explained. He then held up his index finger and pointed to the smoldering crater that Seireitou had just leaped out of. "However, as you can see, in a battle that combines many tactics, kidō proves to be incredibly useful." Raian twirled one of his swords around, as if playing with it as he spoke. "Also, be careful. I realized that your technique is fading. That devious smile just now reveals you haven't completely cut yourself off from your emotions. My Inyō is tingling at the feeling of the emotions surfacing in you. You'd better keep your focus on that technique, otherwise I might get an advantage." Raian said, snatching the twirling blade out of midair and pointing it at Seireitou. Seireitou looked down to his blade, narrowing his eyes. "Seireitou..." a voice came, as the figure of Hanullim's inner spirit appeared behind him, his hand on Seireitou's shoulder. "Hanullim... I've been thinking about the ability of Raian, and I've come up with a solution. That Inyō blade cannot influence what it can't target directly. Knowing that... if I allow your spirit to control my body, then he can't stop my attacks!" he sent to Hanullim, the latter smiling softly. "Are you sure this will work?" he asked. Seireitou closed his eyes, facing down, "I'm not totally sure... but, based on what I've gathered so far, this Zanpakutō is unique in that it can't affect what it isn't aware, and thus..." he ended, with a smile, as a circle of spiritual energy began to surround Seireitou, blasting outwards with a dramatic force of spiritual pressure. "Let's go, Raian." he stated, his voice seemingly darker than before. "This...reiatsu. It's different from before. It's the same signature, but more forceful than before. This...isn't Seireitou." Raian concluded, tightening the grip on his blades. "Are you Hanullim, or some else?" he asked, not really expecting much of an answer. "Hadō #90, Kurohitsugi!" he declared. A black box formed around Seireitou's body and several black spears appeared to pierce it. "I guess this is the moment of truth..." he thought as the box dissipated. The black box surrounded the silver-haired man, causing Raian to believe it made contact. However... within, was pitch-black darkness. All that could normally be seen in this darkness was a frown on the face of the trapped Seireitou. Raian's eyes changed from confirmation to shock, as a blade completely ripped across the midsection of the black Kidō trap, destroying the entire contraption. Seireitou's eyes revealed a faint hue of lavender, supplementing his birth color of amber. His next movement did not attempt to taunt, as he appeared right at Raian, causing another trace of shock to enter the brown-haired Toreru's face, as Seireitou whispered, "Shikon Hisakiten." A massive burst of spiritual power exploded into Raian at point-blank, giving him no time to perceive the technique before-hand. Bursting from the explosion, Raian landed flat on his back a few meters away. "Crap...that one hit me head on. If not for my Hierro, I'd be a goner.." he thought, looking at the burn marks on his hands and arms. Using his dual blades as a crutch, Raian pushed himself to his feet. "Sei would've taunted before an attack like that. That's definitely Hanullim." Suddenly, it became clear to Raian. He could tell the differences in Seireitou and Hanullim's reiatsu now that he could distinguish between the two. "Now I've exposed your little trick. Inyō, latch onto both signatures. Yin, you focus on Sei-san's and Yang, you focus on Hanullim's. I'll execute your techniques." he mentally commanded. His reiatsu flared, causing several nearby building windows to shatter. "Come." he declared. "He fell for it." came to mind, as he smiled softly. "I could feel the influence on my emotions that he held over me as weakened... meaning he must have attempted to split the attention on both me and Hanullim." he pondered, taking note of Raian's Zanpakutō, one that took the form of two seperate blades. "Now then... time for the second step of my plan." he thought to himself, running his hand slowly against his face; from his forehead to his chin. A trail of spiritual power followed, forming a crystal mask that followed with a massive leak of spiritual power that was lavender in color. "His blade's attention is on me and Hanullim... so what does he plan to do about Sanagi?!" roared inside his mind, as he kicked off the ground, instantly appearing behind Raian, swingin his blade down as a large blast of energy escaped from the blase, exploding into Raian with greater density than before. As Raian was propelled out of the smoke, Seireitou noticed a bleeding wound on Raian's arm and chest. "Looks like that hierro is starting to fail you, my friend." he stated, in a combination of his darker voice from before, and another voice that resembled that of a maniac. However, one thing Seireitou failed to notice was the smile on Raian face as he flew backwards. He then placed his hand over his forehead and ripped downwards, forming spiritual matter on his face in the form of his Hollow mask. Immediately the density of his spiritual pressure increased and his wounds suddenly healed themselves. "Toreru power up differently than Vizard." he explained, catching his balance. "Vizards have Inner Hollows that remain just that; inner Hollows. Toreru Inner Hollows go through the Menos evolution process, though differently than normal Hollows. As we Shinigami gain power, so do the Hollows inside us, evolving slowly. I finally subjugated mine after it evolved fully into the Vasto-Lorde class." He then pounced, and slashed a crack into Seireitou's crystal mask, reappearing behind him before the latter could make a move. "I'm a little more feisty in this form. Let's cut loose and have some fun, shall we?" No Time for Games: The Game Begins... lol Seireitou's crystal mask restored the crack without any movement from the silver-haired man. "I see... you seem rather excited that you're able to keep up with such low-level techniques." he stated, as a massive burst of spiritual pressure fell on the area, as he disappeared. Behind Raian, Seireitou attempted a swing of his blade to which Raian turned to defy, but it was only an afterimage, as Seireitou was really on Raian's left. "You missed." he declared, swinging his blade down hard on Raian's shoulder, as the latter could not react quick enough to perceive, let alone halt. Raian grinned under his mask. The blade of his friend came crashing down on his shoulder, but didn't produce the desired effect. Instead it was the blade that cracked, while Raian remained uncut. "Don't be shocked." he said, walking forward and allowing Seireitou's blade to fall to the street floor. "You should've already established that I had Hierro." Two buildings around them were suddenly cut in two, though it didn't appear that Raian had even moved. "Even my speed has increased. I didn't use Hollowfication because I needed to close the gap in our power; my reiatsu is already bigger than yours. Or can't you sense it yet?" "Tch." responded Seireitou as he backed up. He snapped his fingers, as Hanullim flew from the ground back into his hand, the man's eyes narrowing. He sighed, "I guess I should have expected this. Foolish of me to rely on such small power." he stated, though Raian drew a blank as to what exactly he was refering to. Seireitou grabbed the collar of his shirt, tearing it slowly off as a tattoo was then visible; a black kanji for the term "Sage." He looked back at Raian, "We Seijin Masters are required to seal off a large portion of our power, because it is too great to be used near others. This restricts our spiritual power to a level at which we will not accidentally influence others... 80% of it to be exact." he stated, as his eyes closed. "Gentei Kaijo!" he stated, as the seal disappeared, followed by a massive pillar of white spiritual power erupting from his body, shooting clear into the sky. It soon faded, leaving a large hole in the sky, as his eyes glowed a faint white that made his amber eyes much lighter in contrast. "The real battle... starts now." he declared, in a much more darker voice, but had a soft peaceful lull to it. Without any movement, Seireitou merely widened his eyes for a mere second, blasting Raian backwards with the sheer force of his spiritual pressure. Raian stood his ground, able to resist the majority of his foe's increase in power. "Reiatsu....such a great force. Seijin Masters are said to be able to control even it's deepest aspects with ease, am I right?" he asked, walking forward slowly. "My reiatsu has two parts to it; an Arrancar side and a Shinigami side. To you, one of the mighty Sōzōshin, such a feat seems childish for you. However..." As he spoke, his reiatsu signature suddenly vanished, making it seem as if his existance had simply faded even though Seireitou could clearly see him standing across from him. In that instant in the interval between the time Seireitou's eyes closed and reopened to blink, Raian had a hand on the latter's face, crushing his mask with ease. Hanki, a technique reversal used on Kidō and other abilities to negate them was flowing from his hand, preventing Seireitou from using one of his techniques on him at such close range. "...when you turn that reiatsu, Spiritual Pressure; the energy from which we use to gauge one another's strength, into reiryoku, Spiritual Energy which isn't sensed by a being, all of our physical aspects are explosively argumented." he explained before hoisting Seireitou into the air with his hand still firmly planted on his face and throwing him several miles out of the city into a nearby forest. He landed in front of where Seireitou had, "You fell for my ploy though: To show me your unsealed power. Let's see what a Seijin Master is capable of." Out of the rubble, appeared the silver-haired man, his head slowly creeping up as he looked over to Raian. "Ow. That hurt." he apathetically stated, as he stood to his feet. He slowly began to rotate his neck, stretching out his arms, as a loud obnoxious yawn emanated from his mouth. His eyes narrowed, as he flashed away, reappearing beside Raian, but taking no further action. "You should know better than to corner an animal like a fox... we have a tendency to show our teeth." he declared, as he jumped back, "Yorumae, Hanullim." Several white comets were launched from the blade, caged in purple flames as they hurtled for Raian. The latter prepared to swat at them, though found something strange; despite Seireitou not controlling them, the comets were flying around, circling Raian as if mocking him. Raian smirked from beneath his mask, "Jikanteishi!" he declared, forming a green box of Kidō in his hand; halting time with the area around the several flame balls. This area then began to glow bright green, "Kūkanten'i!" he said. Suddenly, Hanullim's attack vanished without a trace. "Wonderful, isn't it? Without the laws of Soul Society binding me, such Kidō are accessible for my every need." He then made a motion with his hand. "The crest of turbidity, seeping out. An insolent vessel of madness. Boiling up, denying, numbness, blinking, obstructing slumber. The steel princess who creeps. The mud doll, ever disintegrating. Unite! Oppose! Filling the earth, know your own impotence! Hadō #90, Kurohitsugi!" Suddenly, dozens of black kidō coffins enclosed around Seireitou. "I've never tried a Hollowfication-enhanced, incantation used, Kidō. Especially not one of the nineties. Kidō is my specialty. I prefer fighting with it, even over my Shikai." he explained as space-time began to rip around Seireitou and he was stabbed with tremendous spears of black Kidō before they then exploded with devastating effects. Seireitou's smirk turned into a frown, his eyes narrowing. "Didn't I tell you once before..." he began, "Tensōsore, Hanullim." rang in his mind, as he swung his blade across. The distortion created by the interaction between space and time was slowly down, ultimately slowing down the Kidō's speed as well. "...I told you already, not to waste my time with such tricks." he finished, turning his blade over, with the tip pointing downwards, as the black coffins around Seireitou shattered all at once. He slowly began taking steps toward Raian, with a disappointing frown. "I told you that Kidō this late in the fight would be fruitless, and you refuse to listen. Now... I'm going to have to take this fight to the next level." he stated, his body emitting a strong hue of white spiritual power... Beyond Shinigami... Bankai Battle! Raian was already way ahead of him. One of his blades disappeared and the other began glowing. Blue clouds of spiritual energy gathered at his feet and the wind around the two friends seemed to cease. "Ban...kai!" he declared. Suddenly, the spiritual energy clouds erupted into the sky, destroying the forested area that enclosed them. When he emerged, he wore a hooded-black robe, with long bell-shaped sleeves, that flared out along the end. His twin swords had merged into one wakizashi-shaped sword. "Inyō Seikishutsu no Yaiba..." he muttered. He then raised his head and took off his Hollow mask. "Your turn." he said. Seireitou closed his eyes, his entire body emitting a dense white spiritual energy. "Bankai." he whispered, as his entire body took the form of white flames, which then instantly combusted, forming a massive explosion which devastated the remaining life in their area, shooting a massive flame pillar into the skies, causing a large hole in the sky to appear. In this form, Seireitou takes on physical properties of all three states of Hanullim's inner spirit. His hair becomes more longer and flowing, with a dark red eyeshadow around the topmost edges of his eyes, as well as similar facelines as Ulquiorra Schiffer. The hakama he normally wears remains, as his shihakushō takes on a more similar appearance to Hanullim's inner spirit. Seireitou's body is draped in lavender veils, similar to that of Hanullim's Kaguya manifestation. Finally, his eyes take the most dramatic change, as they appear to become a strange mystical white, with a shadowy black outline; extremely similar to the overall color scheme of Hanullim's Kagemmi manifestation's appearance. The physical form of Seireitou's Zanpakutō remains very similar to his sealed state, becoming more of a japanese longblade daitō. "I don't believe I've ever shown you this form. I've only had to use it on one other person besides Datara." he explained. "Prepare, my friend. This battle will feel power levels unlike anything we've ever experienced." he stated. "Right back at you." Raian said. "My Bankai is still immature. I've got a lot of Jinzen training ahead of me." He then looked up at Seireitou, a solemn look in his eyes. "Even so, my Bankai is terrifying even to me. I really wanted to avoid using this Bankai. It is unfitting for a friendly match between comrades." he explained, holding the blade upside down as if showing it to Seireitou. "Look at it's shape. It looks small to make you think that overcoming it is a walk in the park, especially for one of your caliber. It's a trick, Sei-san. Don't fall for it." He spun it around in midair and caught it, holding out to point it at his target. "If even for a single instant you believe you've beaten it, you will have allowed it to make a killing blow." he declared. The silver-haired man's eyes narrowed, just as he had been doing all throughout the match. He had seen through his friend's taunts, pointing his blade for Raian. "Unlike you, I won't waste my words to taunt." he said, as his next appearance was beside Raian. The latter didn't hear a sound, or even vibrations in reishi, making his movement literally unpredictable. Massive torrents of white flames escaped the blade, colliding at full-range with an intensity rivaled only by the sun's flames. The flames cracking noise consumed the area, drowning out all sound. Then, suddenly from within the flames, a powerful voice emerged, "Unwilling Mystic, seeking to embrace the earth, beckoned by the skies, rejected by the darkness. Gravity forces you to do it's bidding. With a strong wall reject that which was created by man. Bakudō #81, Danku..." it declared. A massive wall blasted it's way through the flames, and they seemingly vanished. Raian stood, exactly how he had before the attack, staring at his foe. "I told you, didn't I? I don't waste words. That was no taunt. It was a warning. The Splitting Void, or Danku, you just saw was incantation backed. You may have been told that it only blocks spells up to #89, but with the incantation, it can block nearly anything it comes into contact with. It lived up to it's name by sucking your flames into a different dimension and burning them out there. On top of that, the wall got bigger." he explained. "There are many ways to use Kidō that'll prevent me from having to use my Bankai too much. After all...I haven't even begun to weave two or more spells together." However, Seireitou had anticipated that Raian would continue to use Kidō. While Raian had been wasting words with Danku's incantation, the silver-haired man was already behind him. "Nine is the key. Nine answers the question of the bloody Queen, as all her servants bow to the spinning of the nine pinwheels. With Nine, the answer turns into victory. Bakudō #79: Kuyō Shibari!" he declared, as eight black holes appeared around Raian's body, with a ninth manifesting in front of his chest. These all began emitting spiritual power, as the silver-haired man had combined these with the sucking power of Hadō #51: Kazāna. The massive winds sucking inwards from all the nine black holes began to pull apart at Raian's limbs, effortlessly dislocating his shoulders and knees among other things. However, things weren't finished, as Seireitou quickly continued, "Forces of the wicked, and of the purest! Unite! Return to One! Never forget the origin of your pitiful existence! Tears of the befallen, use as your power, as all infidels fall prey to your ultimate wrath! Hadō #94... Idomu Īwatasu." he began, the trapped Raian unaware of this particular Kidō spell. Seireitou gave off a menacing smile, "This Kidō uses the power around it to form, and since the Kuyō Shibari technique emits spiritual power from your body, as well as all the power around it, It continues to add power to the Idomu Īwatasu. The more power Idomu Īwatasu has... the more catastrophic the damage." he stated, as he yelled out, "Idomu Īwatasu!", the massive burst of spiritual energy exploded from his arm into Raian at lightning speed. The explosion that followed caused Seireitou himself to flee to a safe enough distance, his eyes keep track of Raian's status once he emerged from the attack... Raian came out of the smoke covered in white reiryoku, which branched out like lighting from his body. Covering the surrounding area. "Hanki. The ability to reverse Kidō and other abilities. Your Kidō didn't stand a chance against a master like me. I reversed it by using Shunkō at max power." he explained. He then instantly appeared next to the silver-haired man making a swing with his sword. Shock was felt by the latter as it fazed through his upper right arm, causing it to instantly go limp. "I wasn't taunting you earlier about my Bankai, as I said. It really is dangerous. Don't die, Sei-san." he said. Seireitou's eyes narrowed annoyingly, "Raian keeps pulling out new tricks... before long, he's gonna go Super Saiyan." he joked to himself, chuckling softly at the thought of Raian with golden spiky hair. He stood up tall, and sighed, "I see. If you think I've reached my limit... not even close." he stated, as he prepared to summon his Shinkūmyō mask once more. However, this time... a massive lavender spiritual power encased Seireitou's body slowly. His body's natural black and white wisps of reiatsu in Bankai began to surround him in what appeared to be a swirling tornado of screaming souls. A dense lavender reiatsu overcame Seireitou's body, as it crystalized and hardened around his body, taking on a human shape. In this new form, he slightly resembled his earlier Sōzōshin form in a way, albeit his face is replaced with a lavender canvas made entirely of sapphire, same as his entire body is. He also has retractable crystal claws on his fingertips and toes, small furry black tufts, and long fox ears that appear to be solid crystal and stand upwards, similar to that of horns. Behind him, it is shown that he possesses a long crystal tail, almost exact in appearance to a fox's, but much longer in comparison. His eyes are no longer visible, but replaced by a pair of glowing crimson lenses that serve as eyes. This "beastly" form stood silent, its cold eyes glaring down Raian. Raian gritted his teeth and took a step back, "Without mastering my Bankai, there's no way I'll be able to defeat him like this." he thought. He then reached back and snatched a white blade off of his back, drawing it and preparing to release it. Suddenly, though, his eyes shrank and he sheathed the blade. He then focused and initiated Jinzen. "Inyō Seikishutsu no Yaiba...why can't I master you now?" he asked his blade. "You're not ready yet..." she replied from within. Raian's eyes narrowed and he quickly donned his Hollow mask for the second time. "If I can't rely on my Bankai...then I'll just have to stick to my other knowledge." he thought, deactivating his Zanpakutō and sheathing it. "In that form, he may not see me as a threat without my Bankai, but I'm more than a handful." With that, a tremendous explosion rocked the area as he activated Shunkō; the result of which blew off his trench coat, revealing his old Onmitsukidō armor on underneath. His reiatsu signature vanished and in an instant, so did he. Knowing that Raian would want him to play by his game, Seireitou instead swung his blade as the tip was pointing for the ground. Then, he suddenly stabbed straight down, a massive burst of his trademark white flames formed a large 360 degree wall around his being that shot into the sky, as he lauched the wall as an attack, sending off the waves of fire in all directions. No matter where Raian was hiding, he'd get hit from an attack that strikes at every angle. However, Raian was by no means intimidated, nor was he hiding; he was simply to fast to be seen. Suddenly, a wave looking much like a tiger came rushing out of no where, slamming into the wall of flames, creating a huge gap in it. Seireitou instantly realized this as Raian's Hirutora technique from earlier. Then, with speed so fast that the gap in the flames didn't even have time to close on, Raian appeared in front of Seireitou, grabbed him by the face and threw him outside the immense wave of flames and into the nearby ocean water before escaping the wall of fire himself. This time, the force of being thrown so hard combined with the fact that hitting the water at such speeds would be like hitting concrete, cracked Seireitou's canvas-like mask severely. The Lavender Fang... Seireitou slowly rose to his feet, his mask broke but began to quickly reform. "Raian... it will take more than physical strength to defeat me." he stated, as his mask began to crack, through he didn't care; in fact, it was as if he planned for this to happen. He held his blade upwards, and focused an immense aura of spiritual power to his blade, being lavender instead of white in color. "Let's see what else you got..." Reiryoku crackled around Raian as a result of his Shunkō, and he slowly floated towards Seireitou. An odd phenomenon occurred as he did; the water fled from him. It refused to get close to him, and thus a gap in the water appeared directly below his path. "Are you certain of this? Physical combat is the cure for reiatsu combat. They are two different planes. This is taught in the Shinō Academy as basic knowledge! You cannot touch with reiatsu, that which reiatsu flees from. Notice that you cannot feel a single shard of reiatsu from me. This is because I simply stopped outputting reiatsu and instead, focused all that energy into my reiryoku, which then fueled my Kidō; creating Shunkō. In essence, it is different from my original mentor's technique because I imitate it differently, but the results are far more rewarding. The Hell Tournament is in five months. By that time, I shouldn't have to use this to beat you. I'd just have continued to use Bankai, however, my Bankai is incomplete and my Hakuda and Kidō are at max. What is my point for telling you this? It's simple. You, who has more reiatsu than Aizen, more knowledge than Yamamoto, and faster growth than Kurosaki-san, do not know a world in which your power cannot touch. Your Hanullim is regarded by some to be the most dangerous Zanpakutō ever and yet, even it has it's limits. It works by using interactions. But it cannot harm what it can't interact with. Simply put, by causing my reiatsu to vanish, your power won't work on me, even in Bankai. And, you cannot force my reiatsu out of hiding because I am beyond your speed. I know what you will say; you're hiding your speed and I am merely being cocky." "You are wrong. From the moment I met you, all those years ago, you have been my greatest rival. Every moment of training I have had, I spent trying to catch up to you. By this time, I too could be as mighty as you in terms of physical strength and Zanpakutō power, as well as reiatsu. I'm not, because I devoted all that time to focusing on one thing; Kidō. Because of that, I have developed my completed Shunkō. I dare you now, test me at any speed or strength you posses. I will dodge you. In fact, one could say, I already have..." he said cryptically, daring his foe to attack. With a sigh, Seireitou's crystal body began to crack. "I see. Perhaps I have been taking you too lightly. Prepare... Getsueikirite Raian." he stated, as a bright light escaped the insides of the crystal's cracks. With a thunderous sound, the crystals fully cracked, breaking away as the light was capable of even blinding Raian momentarily. Once he regained vision, Raian peered in to see what had occured. Seireitou's appearance had changed, as he now wore a gray shihakushō, along with a black hakama, held together by a firm rope belt. A black mantle with burnt edges was draped over his shoulders, that stayed connected together by what appears to be a tomoe necklace. His hair had changed colors dramatically, transformed from its natural silver to lavender with a light purple tint. It also became much longer than before, especially his side bangs. Probably the most strange change to Seireitou revolves around his newly grown kitsune ears and long kitsune tail, both being lavender in color. His eyes obtain color from their mysterious mystic white to a resolute dark lavender. Seireitou began building up spiritual power, as his eyes emitted a mystical white color. "Raian. This form has only been seen by two others. Consider yourself the third." and ends his statement by flicking his thumb, a small but lethal force then pushed back Raian, forcing him up against the building behind him with a thud. Seireitou then instantly disappeared.